France's interior minister has said that a driver who rammed a car into police in an "attempted attack" on security forces on the Champs-Elysees was carrying a "number of firearms and explosives."

"Once again our security forces have been targeted. The threat is extremely high," French Minister of the Interior Gerard Collomb told reporters.

Collomb will introduce a proposal to extend the state of emergency in France at a meeting of ministers on Wednesday.

Police told the public to avoid the area following the incident which led armed security personnel to descend on the area.

Some 30 minutes later, the police tweeted that the incident was now under control.

Videos from the Champs-Elysees show armed officers redirecting traffic away from the scene.

The vehicle caught fire after crashing into the police vehicle, an official told AFP.

France has been in a state of emergency since an attack in Paris in November 2015 that killed 130 people. Last month a police officer was killed and two seriously injured following a shooting at the Champs-Elysees.